On October 2010, Dr. Leonardo de la Garza was part of the "Dynamic Campus" team hawking computer and Internet solutions at the Texas Association of Community Colleges' annual board of directors meeting held in Austin, Texas.
At the time he was listed as an employee with Dynamic Campus Solutions Inc., in effect an employee and salesman of the company.
Among some of the glowing letters of recommendation for the new president was one from de la Garza who said in his recommendation that: "...Tercero is "one of the best," noting she was actively involved in board decisions as well as her church and community. "She worked with me at Sante (sic) Fe Community College and at Tarrant County (College District)," the recommendation read. "Lily is one of the brightest and most hard working individuals I know. She is a star, she just shines, and she will be an outstanding president at Texas Southmost College."
Then, on November 17, 2011, Tercero recommended that de la Garza be hired to be part of her transition team, which the board did. As part of his duties, he is one of the consultants to the TSC board when the members evaluate the TSC president.
Once on board, de la Garza took part in advising Tercero and the board on the necessary policy moves and expenditures to make TSC a free-standing institution once it gained operational independence in the fall of 2013. On of those was the colleges' information technology (IT) section. As a close personal adviser of the new president, he would have had a direct hand in advising the TSC administrative staff on formulating the Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for the new IT setup.
As the local daily reported in September 2011, IT services were some of the many assets that became intertwined as the "partnership" between TSC and UT-Brownsville developed.
On May 21, 2012, the TSC board of trustees engaged the services of de la Garza's Dynamic Campus Solutions Inc. to implement the college's information technology (IT) solutions.
Tercero said the college was aiming for state-of-the-art technology. At the time, the contract required a budget amendment, said Chet Lewis, TSC vice president for finance and administration.
The board approved the contract with a cap at $800,000 not to exceed $1 million and Lewis told then the price was for phase one of creating a new TSC system.
The local daily reported that the price "includes the creation of a new TSC website, the provision of network services such as email and phone, a help desk and a cloud, or protected Internet connection, for the school’s data. The phase will take place May 30 to Dec. 30 (2012)."
What Dynamic Campus senior vice president Richard Middaugh didn't tell the TSC trustees during his presentation on May 21 was that his company was incorporated in California and could not legally do business in Texas until it had filed its application for registration of a foreign for-profits corporation here.Records with the Texas Secretary of State indicate that Dynamic Campus filed its application on September 6, 2012 and listed the date "on which the foreign entity first transacted business in Texas" as June 6, 2012, more than a week after TSC had granted it the IT contract. It lists its president as Michael Glubke, with his offices listed at 2806 Flintrock Place, Ste. A205, Austin, Texas.
A Google search shows a rural address in Lakeway, Texas, off Ranch Road 620 S. outside of Austin with a two-story masonry building shared with other businesses.
Right before the May 21 $1 million award to Dynamic Campus Solutions de la Garza was the featured "special guest" of Dynamic Campus Solutions in Orlando, Fla., during the 2012 American Association of Community Colleges' 92nd Annual Convention April 21-24 where the company invited participants to "stop by and see us and our special guest, Dr. Leonardo de la Garza at booth 822..."
De la Garza continues to be paid by TSC as a consultant to Tercero on a myriad of matters, but Dynamic Solutions has never been left out.
Just as Lewis warned that the initial $1 million outlay to the company for IT work was just the beginning, the TSC administration staff came back on September 20, 2012, telling the board that they "had worked with Dynamic Campus to develop an amendment to the contract to proceed with the remaining phase of the proposed services."
They recommended – and the board approved without the need for further RFPs:
1. $2,042,856 for FY 2013 (Jan. 1-Aug. 31, 2013)
2. $3,568,944 for FY 2014 and
3. $3,824,616 for FY 2015 with an option to extend the contract an additional three-year term.
Was de la Garza, while working as a consultant to TSC president Tercero and still associated with Dynamic Campus Solutions, receive a commission for the $10 million sale?
We can probably guess what his recommendations will be when the board evaluates his former employee Tercero.
Now, we've heard that a good word goes a long way, but in the case of de la Garza, his recommendation of his buddy Tercero was worth its weight in gold with $10,436,416 worth in IT contracts to his company Dynamic Campus Solutions, wouldn't you think?
23 comments:
TSC no different than other colleges. Shut it down. It's soiled as well.
Devastating, even given the low ethical standard in place in the RGV. This is a clear case of fiduciary fraud. I have supported Kiko and Trey in the past and will wait to see if this act on this embarrassment. I simply can't see what they find valuable in Tercero. She is clearly in over her head as a community college administrator, but does seem to understand the misuse of district taxpayers' funds.
Don't worry about it shutting down, Kiko, Ed and Art will milk it dry with contacts to the Escobedo's and Lily handing contracts out to her mentor. All for a kick back, a free trip and the food leftovers at the board meetings. What a bunch of clowns.
Y el viejito senil de Garcia apenas se acuerda como se llama. Parece cotorrito, repitiendo lo que le ordenan.
Montoya:
Keep your eyes open for the next Escobedo Brothers security bid. Kiko is their employee, lobbyist and buisness partner. He has been activley lobbying the "fabulous four" to approve their bid.
what a disappointment. I dont know who this De la Garza guy is, but these allegations should be looked into. If he is as close to Tercero as it looks, these are grounds to fire her or de la garza. One of them has GOT to go.
"One hand washes the other." A new college start is also an opportunity to make lots of money is you have the inside track.
Put Queen Julieta and Queen Lily in a sack, shake it up and see which one falls out first.
This is something that had to be done, had you researched for a better price or better service, when you hire some one for a delicate job, you always hire some one you know will do a good job
Again juan, you fuck the Blimp.....he reacts to what you write, just like he reacts to what Barton writes. He has no investigative skills what so ever. The blimp is a reactionist, and he will react to this.....he had no idea you were dropping this bomb...but he will still protect this shenanigans by Tercero...and why did all the board go along with this? They are all incompetent.
Juan, I knew about this since 2012, I find it incredibly hard to believe that you just learned about it. Another thing I heard and know about was the fact that it would of been MUCH cheaper (about 30% less) to have an IT department managed by TSC itself. Think about it, UTB was going to fire quite a lot of people and that would include people from their IT department. They could of hired those guys and had an IT department with full knowledge of how things were done but instead they simply threw millions of dollars on a company ran by incompetent idiots.
Tercero looks like de la Garza in drag. Have they ever been seen at the same place at the same time?
There's alot of innuendo here. Be careful not to indict without some evidence to warrant it as innuendo is not sufficient.
I said it many months ago. The beginning of a new UTB part 2. Power, money makes people corruptible.
Bola de ratas. This is exactly what the TSC board wanted. Indict all the board and get rid of Tercero. She is incompetent !
"Innuendo" is certainly not sufficient for an "indictment", but what has transpired raises enough reasonable suspicion that it should spur an investigation by the Board, if not others.
While some may see the Board members as all-powerful, they do have a fiduciary duty to the district's taxpayers. Due diligence would probably be served by a legitimate Board investigation. If there isn't a problem, then so be it. If there is, then the Board should act accordingly.
Watergate started with innuendos.
Is the mug picture, the guy wearing the mustache related to Saddam?
There is no "Innuendo" here.
When Tercero came aboard in the early stages of the new TSC the question for an IT department came up and Tercero immediately started to push for a "third party company" to run it even though people told her several times that it wouldn't be cost effective she STILL pushed for it and the name Dynamic Campus came up almost immediately. Besides, did she brought two of her buddies to "help her out" build the college as soon as she came in too?
I can't imagine Lily taking lessons from Julie! Besides $10 million is PEANUTS as compared to the booty that the Evil Queen of Fort Brown made of with! PEANUTS!!
Y a el CANGAS, cuando van a ir a Matamoros por el? Pinche asesino borracho.
A cada santito se le llega su hora.
Ed Rivera is Gay, and his weird girlfriend is gay as well. That is the reason he gets along with BOBBY THE BLIMP. Birds of a feather. Y te lo dijo un tonto.
Taking Bets who is financing Kiko's vacations? The Escobedos, De La Garza, Camacho that just received a good contract? So many choices.
Rata ta ta ta ta ta ta at ta remember figures don't lie but liars figure. Print your name their not going to hired you anyway.
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